1. Technical Field
The present invention generally relates to motor vehicles. More particularly, the present invention pertains to a mechanism for increasing the hauling capacity of a cargo-carrying vehicle.
2. Discussion
The bed area of cargo-carrying vehicles often includes protrusions over the wheels, i.e. wheel wells. These wheel wells prevent the bed area from being completely flat, and they can limit the effective hauling capacity of the vehicle. Operators of cargo-carrying vehicles such as pickup trucks often have a need to temporarily create a completely flat surface in the vehicle bed area. It is known in the art to insert wooden slats across the interior of the bed area, thereby creating a horizontal planar supporting surface above the vehicle wheel wells. Cargo-carrying vehicles and cargo-carrying vehicle bed liners have been designed to accommodate these slats. Occasionally, however, operators have a need to transport cargo that is longer than the bed. For example, an operator hauling large sheets of plywood or sheet rock may need to transport items that extend further than the dropgate of the vehicle. These operators would benefit from an extension of the horizontal planar supporting surface area. In particular, operators would benefit from an extension that could be utilized with the dropgate in a lowered position.
Currently, attempts to haul cargo, with the dropgate open, on a flat surface, such as one created by the previously mentioned wooden slats, must be limited to cargo that does not extend far beyond the support provided by the rearward most slat. If cargo extends much further than this point, several problems arise. First, the article may have a tendency to tip out of the bed of the truck, thereby creating a potential to lose the article. Second, more fragile cargo, such as particle board or sheet rock, may warp or break if not well supported on both ends and in the middle.
Existing structures have been designed for the purpose of extending the cargo space of trucks and other vehicles. However, these devices have certain disadvantages. In some cases, one end of the cargo is propped against a dropgate or a protective bar secured to the top of the dropgate in the raised position. These designs do not provide a substantially horizontal planar supporting surface and may put undue stress on the dropgate and its associated hinges and locks which are not typically designed to support cargo. Moreover, fragile cargo being transported in this manor could easily warp due to the lack of support in the middle of the cargo. In other cases, structures are installed into the bed area of the vehicle and hinder the convenient transportation of normal cargo. In still other cases, cargo is loaded by sliding it across the dropgate or across a beam. This may cause damage to the cargo or to the dropgate.